Cleveland Museum of Art

Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design

Date

1200s-1300s

Medium

Celadon ware with inlaid white and black slip decoration

Culture

Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)

Department

Korean Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This rare long-neck celadon wine bottle is inlaid with white wild chrysanthemums, symbols of both the poem "Drinking Wine" and blessings of longevity. One root has three stems with tiny white blossoms. The damaged lip was repaired with gold lacquer. Korean Celadons Repaired with Gold Termed kintsugi (literally meaning “gold joinery”) in Japanese, this method of repair highlights broken parts with glittering gold mixed with lacquer. Initiated in 15th-century Japan, the technique follows a popular aesthetic concept called wabi-sabi , which finds beauty in imperfect things and continued to be practiced throughout the modern period in East Asia. Goryeo celadons were considered extremely rare treasures among modern collectors; thus, the broken condition of these examples is brilliantly highlighted in gold lacquer on the repaired spouts, handle, and lid. Termed kintsugi (literally meaning “gold joinery”) in Japanese, this method of repairing broken parts with glittering gold mixed with lacquer was extensively used for ceramic works in the Goryeo period, such as this one.

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